The Price of a Mermaid
by Darkest Fire19
Summary: Yugi isn't human. In fact, she's not supposed to be able to see! Why? She was born blind.. What is she? read and find out! D.F.: that's my worst summary...
1. Prologue

The Price of a Mermaid

Prologue: She's blind...

Deep in the ocean, long before the first pyramid was made, mermaids were celebrating the birth of the king's seccond child. The year was 3150 B.C., and the queen of the mermaids had just gone into labor. King Takashi of the merpeople was pacing out side the healing chambers where his wife, Queen Shinju, was giving birth to his seccond child. He was extremely worried. 'Please, Posiden, don't let this child suffer the fate of Tsubasa.' Takashi pleaded mentaly. Tsubasa, the prince, had died only four hours after his birth. His full name had been Tsubasa Yusa Oceana (A/N: I don't own Barbie in a mermiad tale; where I got the last name from!).

"My king?" Takashi looked up.

"How are they, Izizu?" he asked. Izizu, the palace healer, the orical, and a priestess, smiled.

"Bolth are just fine. Queen Shinju gave birth to a healthy baby girl," Izizu told the worring king. he nodded. Takashi went into the healing chambers to see that his wife was crying.

"Shinju, what's wrong?" he asked. Shinju looked a Takashi.

"Oh Takashi... Izizu didn't even notice, but our daughter... She's blind..." At the revelation, Takashi's eyes softened. He swam closer to his beloved.

"It'll be alright dear. I'll call for Amarana, she'll know what to do," Takashi told the fretting mother. She nodded. 30 minuets later a beautiful mermaid swam in. The black haired, golden banged, crimson eyed king turned to the tri-colored mermaid. Her hair was mainly black with crimson tips and golden bangs.

"You called, your highness?" she asked. Takashi and his amethyst haired and eyed wife looked at each other.

"Amarana, we have a problem. Our daughter is blind. What are we to do?" Shinju asked. Amarana smiled.

"All she'll need is a guide. My son can do it. Yami, come here," she said/called. A young merboy that looked just like his mother, only star-shaped hair with golden bangs going up into the black, swam into the room. He looked to be no more than two years old.

"Yes mommy?" the boy asked. Amarana smiled at him.

"Yami, the new princess is blind. Would you like to be her friend and guide?" she asked her two year old son. His eyes lit up a the possibilities that it could bring and nodded eagerly. (A/N: Yami doesn't want power, just a really good friend.) Amarana smiled. Shinju smiled at the young merboy.

"Would you like to see my daughter?" Yami nodded and swam over. He looked down and was startled by their resemblance. Her hair was long like her mothers and it was tipped in amethyst and there were no gold streaks. The princess stared right back, as if she could 'see' him in a sense. The little merbaby giggled and tugged on one of his stray bangs. Unlike others, he didn't yelp or back off. Yami was captivated by her unseeing slightly hazy large amethyst eyes. As her hand started to fall, he gently caught it. He smiled when she laughed. He looked at the queen and king, who were smiling along with his own mother.

"What's her name?" he asked.

* * *

And that's where I'm leaving it!

Devil: You need to finish your other stories and so do I!

I don't care. *shrug* when I get an idea, I write it down or start the story. That's just how I roll. Stories will be completed, it will just take a while.

Devil: *sigh* Fine. Please review.


	2. Chapter 1

The Price of a Mermaid

Chapter One: Her name and His Promise

"We should name her Clara."

"No. Veronica or Pearl would be better."

"No. How about Grace?"

"No."

And so the Queen and King argued again about their daughter's name. The had been doing so for the last two years of her life. The princess was sitting by frowning. '_I wish Yami could name me or I could name myself._' she mentally sighed. She hated listening to her parents arguing. Yami came in a few minuets later.

"Little One?" since she didn't have a name and he needed to call her something, he decided to give her a nickname. Yugi looked at him, like normal. He smiled at her. Even though she couldn't see, it was found that she could sense where something living was. With practice, she could identify someone by just their aura.

'Yes?' she signed. About a year ago, Izizu found that the princess was also mute, so she had to learn to use sign language through brail. It was hard for the young mergirl, but she was getting by. It helped that she had Yami, her most trusted and beloved friend, there to help her.

"Come on. I want to show you something," Yami said. Said girl nodded. The king and queen turned towards Yami.

"Yami dear, while your out, could you name our daughter since we can't figure out what to name her?" Shinju asked, Takashi nodding in agreement.

"Sure," Yami said, shrugging. He moved towards the door. The princess followed. It seemed that other than just sensing where a person was, she could also sense movement. When outside the palace, Yami swam towards the surface. The young princess followed, curious of what Yami was up to. When she reached where he was, Yami took her arm and had them surface. The young one gasped as fresh and cool air filled her lungs. The young mermaid was amazed by the sounds she was hearing and the smells that she smelled. Yami led her over to a large rock and lifted her up.

'Yami? Where are we?' she signed when she noticed that she was stable. Yami smiled again.

"We're on the surface. Oh Little One. It's beautiful and I wish you can see it, but at least you still experience it," Yami told her, his smile sad. The mergirl frowned. '_I hate that I can't see. Because of that, everyone worries. I guess I really am useless..._' she thought.

"Stop thinking like that. You're not useless," Yami said. The mergirl glared in his direction. Damn, she had forgotten he was a mind-reader, literally. Yami smiled at her, knowing that she was mentally cursing his ability.

"You know that Queen Shinju and King Takashi would be surprised that their two year old could curse," Yami said casually, acting like he was 16 when he was only four. Said two year old rolled her unseeing eyes, as if saying 'so what?'. Yami shook his head.

"You really love playing games, don't you Little Moon?" Yami asked. Little Moon was another nickname he gave her because of her 'Moon Pale' skin. An idea struck Yami.

"I just thought of something to name you," he said. The mergirl had her attention on Yami fast at that. When you're two already and don't have a name, you tend to go for any idea. Yami looked into the merchild's eyes.

"How about Yugi Tsuki Oceana?" Yami asked. The princess thought it over.

'Moon Game of the Ocean?' she signed. Yami nodded. She thought it over more, then nodded.

'I like it!' Yami smiled at that sign.

"Alright Yugi," he said, surprised at how easy it rolled off his tong (sp?). Yugi smiled.

* * *

-12 years later-

A young mermaid sat looking at nothing in particular. It was Yugi. The princess was now 14 and she had changed only a little. Instead of having her hair tipped in amethyst, it had amethyst streaks. She was waiting for Yami, because she was in a room alone, and she couldn't navigate through something that wasn't natural. Yugi looked up when she felt Yami's aura enter the room.

'_Yami!_' she mentally squealed, knowing he'd hear her thought, as she tackled him. Yami laughed as he hit the floor.

"Alright Yugi!" Yugi pouted but got off. Yami led her to their spot on the rock where Yugi got her name. Yami looked at Yugi and she sensed that he had something to tell her. She waited patently. Yami bit his lip.

"Yugi, I want to promise you something. I've been thinking about this a lot. Even if you get your sight and voice, I swear with all my heart and soul that I will be there for you and I will protect you no matter what. Will you accept my pelage?" Yami told Yugi. Yugi smiled in his direction and nodded. She had known for some time that Yami would take the roll of guide and translator to the level of protector and the person who would always be there for her at some point. Yami's face was in a huge grin. He couldn't believe it! She accepted! Yami took Yugi's hands in his own and put their foreheads together and said the chant that would finish the bond. Soon a light flashed before it was gone.

/Yugi?/ Yami asked over their new mind link.

\Yes?\

/You have no idea how happy I am right now. Thank you./

\Your welcome, Mou Hitori No Boku.\ Yami blinked. He decided that if Yugi did that, he would take a risk.

/Yugi, can I call you Aibou?/ Yugi thought for a moment.

\Yes, you can Yami\ she replied to his question. Yami smiled before pulling away. Both missed the contact. They were now officially yami and hikari. Yugi frowned when she realized something.

\Yami? Do you feel like something's missing?\ she asked, like that she could talk to Yami easier. Yami nodded, knowing Yugi sensed his movement. Just because she was blind didn't mean that she was invalid.

/Yeah. Do you think...?/ Yugi nodded at his question. Both knew that they were missing a part of their yami/hikari relationship. The one they were missing was called 'yakari' or shadowed light. It was in between a yami and hikari and yakaris were rare. Not many had them. Yugi wished with all her soul that she could find their missing yakari. Little did she know what the gods would have in store fore her thousands of years in the future...

* * *

Mou Hitori No Boku: 'The other me'

Aibou: Partner


	3. Chapter 2

The Price of a Mermaid

Chapter Two: Their Separation and Her Shock and New Home

A 16 year old looking Yugi swam as fast as she could, trying to get away from her yami. The two were near the surface, as they found that they felt more comfortable near the sky and sun. While Yugi looked 16, she was actually 5156, and the year was now 2006 B.C.E. (modern age, by the way for those who don't know) She was laughing through their link, and Yami was laughing out loud. They soon stopped on some rocks. Yugi closed her eyes as the sun warmed up her paler-than-death skin.

/That was fun!/ Yami laughed through the link.

\Indeed!\ Yugi laughed back.

\Yami?\

/Yes Aibou?/

\You do realize that my parents would flip if the found out where we were? I mean, we're near humans!\ Yugi told Yami, who snorted.

/The day they find out is the day you become a human mysteriously, get your sight, and we're separated./ (A/N: Foreshadowing!) Yugi giggled at her yami's response. There was a loud sound. Yugi and Yami turned to find a boat heading directly at them. Their eyes widened. Yami dove back into the ocean. Yugi went to follow, but rocks pushed her back and she hit her head. Yugi soon fell unconscious.

Yami looked to see if Yugi was fallowing. He was pretty far from their rock now. His eyes widened when he didn't see his hikari.

"Yugi? Yugi!" he called, starting to panic. He took a breath and called through their link.

/Yugi?/ Silence. He was staring to panic now.

/"YUGI!"/ he shouted both out loud and through the link, but it was no use. He started to swim back to the area he last saw her. He looked for 8 hours straight, but had no luck. He dived under the water, the 5160 year old merman thinking how he would tell the king and queen that their daughter might be dead.

* * *

When Yugi woke next, she noticed that she was on a beach. She groaned as she pulled her self up into a siting position. The next thing she became aware of was not the pounding in her head. No, it was the fact that she made a sound and she could see. Her eyes widened. After that she became aware of the sever (sp?) pain in her head and her tails. Wait. Tails? Yugi looked down and, where her tail used to be, found two legs. _Human _legs. Yugi didn't know what to think. She looked her self over and found that she hadn't rapidly aged, meaning she was still immortal. She tried to use the link, but found her side blocked. She tried to take the block down, but couldn't. She started to panic a little. She tried her magic, but found she could only heal the minor cut on her arm and head, from the rocks. She was officially freaked out.

"Hey, are you okay miss?" a young human girl no more than 8 asked, coming up to her. Yugi looked to the child. She looked about 4-5, but Yugi looked 14-15 to humans, so she new that the child had to be at least 6.

"Yes, I'm fine," Yugi answered, surprised at her own voice. Okay, NOW she was officially freaked out. The human-girl looked Yugi over.

"Why don't you have any clothes? Not even a swim suit," the human asked. Yugi sighed. Yugi then got an idea. Young children like her still believed, didn't they?

"Do you believe in merpeople?" Yugi asked. The human child nodded. Yugi smiled.

"Well, I am a mermaid," Yugi told the child. She tipped her head to the side.

"A mermaid? Really? That's awesome! Where's your tail?" the girl was extremely excited.

"I don't know what happened. I was nocked out, and when I woke, I was like this," Yugi explained.

"Oh... I'm Heba by the way! What's your name?" 'Chatty little thing.' Yugi thought fondly.k

"I'm Yugi," Yugi replied. Heba smiled before grabbing Yugi's hand, pulling her up, and tugging her off. Yugi blinked. 'Kid moves fast.' she thought. They stopped in front of a house. Heba's smile dropped when she noticed her parents on the front porch.

"Mom, Dad?" Heba asked. Heba's parents looked at him.

"Good bye, Heba. We're leaving. I can't stand you, you fucking useless brat!" hissed Heba's mom. Yugi's eyes flashed at that. How dare that whore? 'Perfect definition of one too.' Yugi thought, looking the woman over. She wore a way too short skirt and an extremely revealing top. Yugi snorted. 'A definite slut.' was her thought. She noticed that Heba's father was no better. Both parents turned and got into the car in the drive way before driving off.

"Good riddance," Yugi muttered. Heba nodded. She looked at Yugi.

"Can you take care of me until Jii-Chan comes to get me?" Heba asked. Yugi nodded. They went into the house.

* * *

I know. the end was pretty crappy. Sorry. Please review anyway. Please?


	4. Chapter 3

Okay. I've decided that, until I finish this story, I wont update any of the others. I'm sorry if this is an inconvenience to some of you, but this is the only way I'm going to complete this. I have a poll that will be up about which story I should finish once I'm done with this one.

Atemu: *Stare* Wow. I can't believe it. She's serious.

Yami: Just wait a few days. She'll crack eventually.

*Devil's Glare* Do you two have a death wish?

Yami & Atemu: No. Why?

I'll give you until the end of the story to figure it out.

Yami & Atemu: *blink*

* * *

The Price of a Mermaid

Chapter Three: Two Years Later and Telling the King and Queen

Yami was pacing in his room. He had come back from his search for Yugi three hours ago. Now, he was wondering how he would tell Takashi, Shinju, and his own mother, Amarana. 'What do I tell them? what do I say?' Yami was close to panicking again.

"Yami? What the hell has you depressed?" asked a merman from the door way. Yami jumped. He turned to the white haired, dark brown eyed merman. He glared.

"Don't do that Bakura!" Bakura was a friend of Yami and Yugi. He was the guardian and translator for their deaf friend Ryou. Ryou was a softer version of Bakura and he had doe brown eyes.

"But he's right," They turned to see a platinum blond haired, lavender eyed merman. His hair was spikey and his eyes had a wild glint. His name was Marik. He was another friend. Marik was Malik's, their other mute friend, translator. Malik was a less wild version of Marik. Yami sighed.

"Yugi and I were taking a swim. We went up towards the surface, like normal. We were having a good time, but then a human ship came and nearly rammed us. I dove off, but Yugi... I don't know where she is if she's even alive!" Yami said. Bakura and Marik admitted the same, and after that, there was a shrill cry.

"What?!" the three merteens turned to see Amarana, Juli, Maie, Shinju, and Takashi were standing there, looking horrified. Juli was Ryou's mom and Maie was Malik's mom. Yami looked down, guilt hanging over him hard.

"This was supposed to happen." they turned to the new voice. It was Izizu. She smiled at them.

"The gods are allowing them to find their yakaris. One day they will return. Just be patient," she said. They all nodded. As much as it pained them all, if it was the will of the gods, then so be it.

* * *

-2 years later-

Yugi laughed as Heba and her friend Tea ran around the yard, playing tag. The girls were screaming with laughter.

"Heba? Who are these two?" an old man had come up. Heba turned and her eyes lit up.

"Grandpa!" she giggled and gave him a hug. He chuckled (Only girls or girlish boys giggle! Unless they're gay, then it doesn't matter...). Heba looked at Yugi and Tea.

"This is my friend Tea! I met her at school! And this is Yugi! I met her two years ago! She's been taking care of me since mommy and daddy left," Heba explained. She then looked at her grand father.

"Can they come with us?! Please! They have no where to go!" Heba said. It was true. Yugi would die or get hurt on her own and Tea's parents abandoned her. Solomon Muto looked at them. He nodded.

"Yes. It would be fine. We'll find Tea a new home and Yugi can stay with us. It's least I can do since you took care of Heba," he said. Yugi nodded with a smile and soon they were off to Domino city!

* * *

Hope you liked! Now. Did you two figure out why I asked?

Yami and Atemu: Because we don't have much faith in you?

*glare* Yes. Now. How do you want to die?

Yami & Atemu: *gulp* see ya! -takes off running with pissed off authoress on their heels-


	5. Chapter 4

Here's the next chapter!

* * *

The Price of a Mermaid

Chapter Four: 8 years later and Meeting Yami

Yugi sighed as she looked her self over in the mirror for the hundredth time. 'After 10 years, I still can't believe it.' she thought.

"Yugi! Hurry up or we'll be late! Heba already left!" Atemu called up the stairs.

"Coming!" she yelled back. As she walked down stairs, she felt a jolt through the barren link that used to connect her to her beloved Yami. She froze. It couldn't be. She looked in the mirror and noticed something on her arm. Her eyes widened. She pulled her sleeve up. Sure enough, on her arm were three yin-yang symbols. The top one was crimson and white, the next was maroon and white, and the third was amethyst and white. Yugi then noticed she was as pale as she once was, that day on the beach.

"Yugi!" Atemu yelled. She sprinted down stairs, stopped to look at Atemu eyes, yep, maroon, checked the clock, and sprinted out the door, Atemu right behind her. The stopped in front of the school just as the warning bell rang. they walked to home room.

* * *

"Why the hell are we doing this again?" a human Bakura asked. He and the other two human-mermen were standing out side of Domino High.

"Because, we felt a jolt from out hikaris here, and we now have yin-yang symbols on our arms, meaning that our hikaris found our yakaris," Yami explained patiently. They walked into the school, went to the office for what they needed, and headed to home room. They nocked on the door and the teacher, Ms. Grace, let them in.

Okay class, today we have three new students. Yami Yikario, Bakura Zenzo, and Marik Peral," Ms. Grace introduced. Yugi's jaw nearly hit the floor. It couldn't be, could it? She looked Yami over, and looked at his eyes without catching his attention. She felt a magical jolt and her link with her merman protector open up. Yugi knew it was true. Yami, her Yami, was right in front of her for the first time in 10 years. And this time she could see him. She, Yami, and Atemu looked similar. Tri-colored hair, only Yami's was tipped in crimson, Yugi's had amethyst streaks, and Atemu's had maroon tips, and Yugi and Yami were both pale. The three could have passed for triplets, except there was no relation at all.

Atemu, noticing Yugi was staring at his look-a-like, became worried.

{Yugi, do you know him?} Atemu asked Yugi.

[Yes, I do Atemu. I'll explain at lunch, k?] Yugi replied, both using their private link.

{K.} was Atemu's reply. Yugi then decided to try her old link with Yami.

-[Y-Yami?]- she asked quietly, not sure if it'd work.

At the front of the class, Yami's eyes widened slightly. It couldn't be, could it?

-{Y-Yugi?}- Yami asked through the link, not sure if it was real or he was imagining it.

-[It's me Yami. I'm here.]-

-{Yugi, where are you? Where's our yakari? I can sense them, but something's blocking me from pinpointing you both}-

-[I'm here in the class. Look towards the back, near the windows.]- Yami did as told, and spotted his beloved hikari in the second to last row. Their eyes connected, which had never happened before.

-{Yugi, how are you meeting my eyes?}-

-[I can see, Yami. Really see. I can see you crimson eyes, your pale skin, your star-shaped tri-colored hair, and your eyes are widening.]- Yami mentally blushed. Yugi's laughter filtered through the link and sounded even more beautiful than the last time he heard it.

-[As for our yakaris, see the boy next to me?]-

-{Yes.}-

-[That's Atemu, our yakari. I've known him for two years now. See the girl that looks like me on the other side of him? That's Heba Mutou, I've known here for 10 years. I've been living with her since she found me on the beach 10 years ago. She and the girl in front of me, Tea Gardner, know that I'm a mermaid that's millennia old. No one else, though. I haven't had the nerve to tell them]- Yugi explained shyly. Yami mentally nodded, before cutting off their link.

"Does any one have questions for these three?" Ms. Grace asked. Yami knew that Marik must have froze time for ever one else before they engaged in conversation with their hikaris. Many hands went up.

"Joey Wheeler, this better be appropriate," Ms. Grace instructed. The dirty blonde nodded.

"It is. Any way, ya three related ta de Mutous, Bakuras, or Ishtars by any chance?" he asked. Yami noted his accent as 'Brooklyn' in human standards. Humans were still such strange creatures.

"No."

* * *

Lunch time couldn't come around fast enough for Yugi, but when it did, she was nervous.

"So, Yug', what ya gotta explain?" Joey asked her. Yugi looked at Joey and sighed. She turned to Heba.

"You should know, I told you it all, Heba," Yugi said vaguely. Heba's eyes widened and darted to Yami.

"You mean-"

"Yes. That's him, I'd recognize Yami anywhere," Yugi replied. Heba nodded in awe. Yami raised an eye brow. Yugi simply gave him a look. She turned towards the others.

"There is something that only Heba knows about me. I am not human. I don't have any idea how this for came to be, but I have my suspicions. I was born a mermaid. My real name is Princess Yugi Tsuki Oceana. I am really about 5166 years old. Also, I have no idea how I can see or talk. I couldn't before. But, I believe that it's because I became human, like my yakari. A yakari is in between a yami and hikari," Yugi started to explain before looking at Yami, "Yami is my yami. We did a bonding ritual that bonded us as a yami and hikari. Our yakari is someone I know. I know who because of this," Yugi pulled her sleeve up, and showed everyone the 'tatoos', "These are yami/yakari/hikari yin/yang symbols. The top one is crimson and white. That represents the yami, Yami. The bottom one is amethyst and white or me. It's based on eye color. Now, who has maroon eyes?" Yugi asked. Everyone looked around, but Yami looked Atemu in the eye and pointed at him.

"You mean my look-a-like?" he asked. He was the only one with maroon eyes, so Yami figured it was him. Yugi nodded.

"Atemu, check you left arm," she told him. He lifted up the sleeve of his uniform, and there were matching symbols. But, while on Yugi's arm the amethyst one was encircled in gold, maroon was encircled on his arm. Yami lifted his to reveal that he had matching one, just that crimson was encircled on his. Atemu was confused.

-What the Hell? Why is it maroon on mine, crimson on his, and amethyst on Yugi's?- he wondered, not realizing the shared link was open know.

{- One, my name is Yami. Two, amethyst is encircled on Yugi's because it represents the hikari, a.k.a. her. Mine is the top because I'm the yami, or dominant, when it comes to protecting you two. Your the yakari, so it's the middle on yours. Do you under stand?-} Yami replied, getting it over with. Atemu jumped and looked at him in shock.

[-It's the mind link Atemu. And Yami, stop scaring him or else...!-] Yugi didn't need to finish her threat, Yami was already paling with every second. Yugi gave a very uncharacteristically smirk. Everyone except Heba, Tea, Bakura, Marik, Ryou, and Malik looked confused.

"It's called the mind link. All yamis, yakaris, and hikaris have it," they said in unison. Joey, Seto, Seth, Akefia, and Mariku nodded, still slightly confused. Yami turned to Yugi.

"It's time to go home. Anyone that wants to come, you can change," Yami said, shocking everyone at the gentleness in his voice. He looked reluctant to say something.

"Yami, I know that I'll risk going blind and mute again, but I must go home. It's time. Besides, I have an idea who wants to come. Heba does I know, and Akefia and Mariku don't have a choice. They are Ryou, Bakura, Malik and Marik's yakaris," Yugi stated. She turned to Tea, who shook her head.

"I don't belong there, you all do. Heba, good luck. Yugi has already told you this, I'm sure, but I believe your a hikari too," Tea said. Yugi nodded.

"She is. She'll find her yami, I'm sure. Come, let's go," Yugi said.

* * *

Okay, either the next chapter, or the one after that is the last. I'm not sure. Yes, I'm sorry to those who have favorite/followed this story, but it's coming to an end. I thank all reviewers and those that have favorite/followed this story. *bow* I will also continue my other stories. Also, for those who liked 'Dead Innocence', it's not gone for good. I'm going to post the original story idea 'Not So Innocent' at another time. Not sure when, but I'm sure it will be soon. Also, as I enter middle school/high school/collage, I will update more in the summer. Yes, I'll be thirteen in July. Please don't judge me, but I wanted to be honest with you. *blush* Good bye, and I hope you liked this story...

Yami: Please review... *in shock* Thirteen. I thought she was 15...


End file.
